The Royal Mark-Chapter 359: Have Faith

As the ship cut through the waters towards Qiryn, Chris’ thoughts raced. He felt a mixture of hope and fear, praying silently that they would reach Qiryn in time. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing Elsa and their unborn child.

On the ship’s main deck, Nathan stood while staring out at the horizon. "Hold on, Elsa," he whispered. "We’re almost there, my child."

As dawn broke, the ship neared the shores of Qiryn. The group prepared to disembark, their hearts heavy with the weight of uncertainty. But despite the odds, they held onto hope, determined to save Elsa and her unborn child.

Hera and Marina were waiting in port when they arrived and prepared with whatever Elsa would need since they did not know what was her current condition.

Everyone acted fast and transferred Elsa to the carriage in no time. Hera and the elven healers tried their best to heal Elsa in the carriage but it was useless. Their healing powers were no use.

Marina looked at Elandir and scolded him, "Why didn’t you use your portal to bring her here as soon as you found her?"

"I had no more stones and mana to do that. If I did, then you will have another person to heal and take care of," Elandir answered.

Marina could only roll her eyes and sigh. It was a hopeless case, if Hera and the elven healer could not heal Elsa, what else could they do?

As soon as they arrived in the castle, King Tyrion and Queen Ydril ordered the healers to bring Elsa to one of the guest chambers that they prepared for her. Chris and Nathan did not leave her side and followed the healers.

"Hera, we told your servants to bring everything that you need from your infirmary to the room of Elsa as soon as we got the message. You can stay in the room next to hers," Queen Ydril said.

Hera nodded and moved along to follow the healers but Stefan called her out. "Princess, I got this bottle from her human servant in Kurzen. She said that it was the poison that Milda gave her. Perhaps it could help you find the cure?"

Hera felt a surge of hope, since she already had the poison in hand, she could easily make an antidote for it. "Thank you so much, King Stefan. Please excuse me, I will work on this right away."

Everyone watched her follow Elsa and the healers, once they were gone Elandir was the one who broke the silence. "Mother, we might need water from the moon well to heal her."

"I will get some now," Marina claimed and quickly went on her way.

"Actually, the reason I decided to bring her here is because of the Tree of Life. I heard Princess Hera’s story from Chris and I was thinking if no healers could heal her then maybe we could try the Tree of Life."

Everyone looked at the person beside them and it was Queen Ydril who answered the vampire king. "It’s a different case for Elsa. When Hera was brought here, she was almost dead and was surely dying. She was also not pregnant at that time unlike Elsa now.

The Tree of Life does not give life that easily. There will be a compromise, a sacrifice is needed. Even though it requires a certain sacrifice, it doesn’t guarantee that one will be healed. The Tree of Life will decide if the person is worth it to be given a second chance in life.

Not that I am saying that Elsa is not worth it but I fear what will the Tree of Life ask in exchange for her life. So let us first try all possible cures before we suggest to Christopher the Tree of Life. I don’t want him to give him ideas when his judgment is clouded by despair and anger."

"We understand, Queen Ydril. But what can we do to help for now?" King Stefan asked.

King Tyrion cleared his throat before speaking, "Go back to Vrenada and help Christopher and his men resolve the situation in Kurzen. The new Witch Queen is still not experienced with such circumstances. She will need your help in making sure that the demons will not take over again of Kurzen." King Stefan nodded.

King Tyrion then faced King Andrius and said, "Go and send a message to your family. I think they should be here with Elsa, in case anything happens. She’s not in good condition so it’s better to prepare for the worst-case scenario instead of regretting it later."

In the guest chamber...

Hera arrived with the bottle in her hand, she saw Chris sitting beside her daughter with tears flowing from his eyes. And in one corner of the room was Nathan, staring at Elsa and Chris with pain in his eyes.

Hera walked over to him and showed him the bottle. "I don’t think this is an ordinary poison. She’s a divine mage and is pregnant with a werewolf baby, she wouldn’t get that affected if it’s just an ordinary poison. It’s not even made of something that could harm a werewolf," Elsa told Nathan.

"It could be dark magic, infused with demonic energy. Your sister, Milda, has turned into a dark witch. Her mother could have given her something from Queen Yvonne to turn out like her," Nathan said.

"Then could we do? I am not losing our daughter and her unborn child," Hera cried.

"I think we could save her but we have to sacrifice her unborn child, her life–" Nathan was not able to finish for Hera covered his mouth with her hand.

"Shh... Chris could hear you," Hera said.

Nathan gently removed her hand and uttered, "Don’t worry, he can’t. It will take him some time to heal, his wolf is slowly dying and with it, he will slowly lose all his werewolf abilities. He will become a wolfless werewolf and won’t be able to shift anymore."

Hera lowered her head and sobbed on Nathan’s chest. Guilt seeped through her core and said, "This is all our fault! Is heaven punishing us for falling in love and having a child? Why can’t heaven just take me instead? It’s my fault for bringing Elsa to life, heaven should punish me instead of my daughter and her family..."

Nathan hugged Hera tightly, "Shh... Have faith, everything has a reason and a purpose, please don’t blame yourself. It was me who pursued you, if there’s someone to blame, it would be me and not you."